Villagers find missing Julau fisherman’s body

JULAU (March 13): The body of a 39-year-old man who failed to return from a fishing trip in Sungai Kanowit, Nanga Sebuloh here has been discovered.

The Sarawak Fire and Rescue Department (Bomba) Operations Centre said firefighters arrived at Rumah Gundi around 9am on Friday to be told villagers had found Geoffrey Senah’s body at 7.30am.

“The victim was found approximately 100 metres from the area where he was believed to have been fishing.

“The body was brought to the riverbank by rescue agencies and subsequently handed over to the police for further action,” Bomba said in a statement.

On Wednesday, Geoffrey had gone out by boat to cast his fishing net at around 7am and never returned home.

“The victim’s boat was later discovered by villagers drifting in the river with his belongings still inside, except for the fishing net believed to have been used at the time,” Bomba.

Villagers began searching for Geoffrey on Thursday morning before Bomba received a report at 1.50pm.

A team from the Bintangor fire station travelled about 72km to Rumah Gundi to lead the SAR operation.

A total of three firefighters from Bintangor fire station were involved in the operation, assisted by the police, Civil Defence Force, People’s Volunteer Corps, and longhouse residents.